stop Knowing, start Loving - Genesis 3:1-10

Genesis 3:1-10

I find myself seeking to know more.  It's one of my habits I guess.  Sometimes its a great thing and sometimes it causes more problems than it solves.  It's a desire to know and be informed and a belief that by knowing more I can make better decisions, know people better, be a better person, be a better Christian.  I want to know more about myself, about people in general, about God, about life, and more recently why people are walking away from and sometimes running away from the church.  Or if they aren't running why they won't truly buy-in to the Church.

But that right there is the real problem I think...we talk about the church as if it is a thing.  We speak of the church as a destination, as a building, as a place, as a club that we are members of.  But the truth is that church is actually none of those things.  The church is a living breathing organism.  The church was intended to be a very fluid, portable, adaptable gathering.  This multifaceted question that keeps coming back to me lately is, "What if knowledge isn't what matters? What if 'doing' church wasn't even a part of God's great plan? What if 'Church' wasn't meant to be a thing we 'do', rather an 'existence' we become a part of? What would that look like?"

That kind of community would be all about RELATIONSHIPS.  It would be about doing life together.  It wouldn't be about rules; "don't do this and don't do that".  It would be about loving one another with no limits or reasons except only that Jesus loved us first and he calls us to "Remain in His love"; to exist within that love so that it becomes a part of all that we think, speak, and do.  A community that takes that seriously won't need the rules, they will simply need more people to love because they have so much overflowing love that their current numbers aren't enough.  

A Lesson From Disney

Last week my wife, Janae, and I took our 2 boys, Joshua(4) & Reid(1), to Disneyworld and we had an amazing time.  We know a number of people who had been in the past, but this was the first time for us as a family.  Based on what we had been told we had very high expectations in terms of guest service (especially in terms of doing anything possible to accommodate guests when needs/concerns/problems arise), the attitude of employees while doing their job, and a general desire of all employees to create an enjoyable stay for all guests.  We did the full service stay: we stayed in a Disney resort, used the meal plan, and went to all the parks; so, during our stay we came into direct contact with at least a couple hundred employees and cast members, probably even more than that.  Of all the hundreds of people we came into contact with during the week we only had two people that didn’t meet up with the expectations we had for our experience.  To only have 2 sub-par encounters out of so many excellent encounters is a testament to the way Disney trains and values their employees.  It is also testament to the level of belief in the product that 99.9% of Disney employees seem to have and actually, even more than all of that, it is a testament to the level of ownership that exists in the hearts of the employees of this monster company known as Disney…and its all for a Mouse?

The reason I am writing about our experience in Disneyworld is because as I was driving the long drive home to Northeast Georgia I couldn’t help but wonder: “If people will believe, buy-in, and take ownership in a company with that level of commitment day-in and day-out…with such a tiny number of sub-par employees (who probably don’t last very long anyway)…for what all comes down to a paycheck; why do we as Christians find it so hard to give that kind of commitment to our Lord and God and the Mission and Vision of His Church?  Why is it that the Church and Christians as a whole have acquired a reputation that turns people away, that is labeled as hypocritical, and in some cases that even repulses people?  If people at Disney who are simply working for a paycheck can have that kind of belief and ownership in a temporary company that will one day cease to exist; why is it that those of us who believe ourselves to be saved from an eternity of pain and torment in hell and saved to an eternity in heaven with the one who sacrificed himself on our behalf can’t have at least that same level of belief and ownership?  Truthfully, we should be outdoing Disney!!  We have something far greater than wishing upon a star!!  We don’t have to wish for our dreams to come true; we know THE REAL TRUTH!!  If we believe in Jesus as Savior and are continually being transformed in all areas of our lives to be more like Him our eternity is set.  We don’t need to wish, we know our eternity is secure!! 

Please don’t misunderstand; I loved every minute of my time at Disneyworld with my family.  They do an amazing job there.  Our boys had a BLAST and Janae and I had a BLAST watching them.  We will go back…we will return to that magical land in central Florida.  But my prayer is that all of us who call ourselves Christians can come to realize that if we are to fulfill the mission given to us by God we need to buy-in, we need to believe, we need to take OWNERSHIP that as Christians we exist to “lead others to a life-changing connection with Jesus” and “we are a church that is on a relentless pursuit of people where they are.” 

Come to your senses!!!! Use your CASE!!!!

Like many of you reading this…I have a “Smart” Phone.  The store that I bought this phone from has a protection plan that I pay for monthly and if anything ever goes wrong no matter what the problem or whose fault it is I can take my phone back to them and they will order a new one at no cost to me (technically it is a refurbished phone, but I can’t tell the difference).  Also like many of you, I bought a case for this phone to protect it from drops, children, myself, and anything else that might happen.  The brand name of this case is “Ballistic”.  With a name like that you would assume it can take just about anything and it can short of being submerged in water for more than a few seconds.  Now as great as this case is, it turns my thin little phone into a brick I carry around in my shorts.  But as long as I have the case on my phone nothing should happen to it.  However, just in case something does go wrong I have the protection plan to back that up. 

Back in the fall I was getting ready to go with the 12^th Man Ministry at the church where I’m on staff in order to serve our local high school’s football team and I decided to take the case off my phone so I could move a little better on the sidelines without this brick flopping around in my cargo pocket.  You can probably figure out where this is going.  While there, I dropped the phone and cracked the screen.  After that, over the next few months I intermittently used the case and eventually the cracking got worse from more drops and the phone started to act like it had been dropped a lot; so, I took it to the store and I get a new one.  I neglected to put the case on the new one and the very next day I dropped the phone one time in a parking lot and by the end of the day my screen was completely black from the liquid crystal oozing all over the inside of the screen.  Long story short I have replaced the phone a total of 3 times now; once because of defect or something, but mostly because I wouldn’t use the case. 

Some of you are probably thinking, “You’re an idiot,” and maybe I am, but this morning I became okay with that because this morning it hit me; isn’t this how most of us Christians live out our faith?  We have the protection plan for our eternity in place called GRACE; this grace wipes away all our sins (past, present, and future) and assures us a new body and eternal life with God in heaven.  Whether you realize it or not, as Christians, we also have a “ballistic” case which is made up of the Holy Spirit, the Holy Bible, and the Holy Church, which when used properly can help us live a life that is as sin free as possible and it also keeps us from experiencing too much damage when we do sin.   

The problem is we often neglect to use the case properly…or AT ALL for that matter.  But we still have the protection plan right?  That’s all we need right?  WRONG!!!  Without the case in tact we will be less likely to resist temptation, we will fall into sin more and more frequently, and we will not be able to withstand the damage sustained from the falls because it will destroy our lives and our ability to serve our function which is to glorify the name of God.

         Paul in Romans chapter 6 talks about dying to sin because of our commitment to a new life in Christ.  I know it is more than a simple scripture reference or a few verses, but I think this larger passage is appropriate.  Here is Romans 6:1-18:
¹ “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? ² By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? ³ Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴ We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

⁵ For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. ⁶ For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with,^[a] that we should no longer be slaves to sin— ⁷ because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.

⁸ Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. ⁹ For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. ¹⁰ The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

¹¹ In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. ¹² Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. ¹³ Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. ¹⁴ For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.

¹⁵ What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! ¹⁶ Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? ¹⁷ But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. ¹⁸ You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

Just because we have the protection plan of Grace doesn’t give us the right to go on sinning.  We must have changed lives, a new focus; living for the glory of God and not ourselves.  If there is no change in our lives then apparently there was no change of heart and that would lead me to say, you have not fully become a servant of Christ.  You may have intended to, but you have not began to be obedient and that is a dangerous place to be.  James 2:17 says “faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”

The “ballistic” case, otherwise known as, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Bible, and the Holy Church is required equipment for an active Christian life.  We MUST use it properly to protect our ability to function as ambassadors of salvation to the world in the name of Jesus Christ.

  A few weeks ago I got my most recent replacement phone… this morning I finally came to my senses and put the case on the phone.  As I walked into the office this morning feeling the weight of the brick back in my pocket…God gave me the inspiration to write this post and give you this encouragement…

COME TO YOUR SENSES!!!!! USE THE CASE!!!!!

Being Offended vs. Casting Judgement

This article is about a subject that is very real for me and I’m guessing to some extent will be very real for many who read it.  Too often, we as Christians are extremely quick to cast judgment on people based on what WE believe to be truth and holiness.  We forget that many people out there do not believe what we believe.  Many people out there have not accepted that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior of the world and so what they see as good and acceptable is not the same as what we (Christians) see as good and acceptable. 

Though we often forget or don’t realize that we are doing this, I do believe this is where the problem starts concerning the topic of “being offended verses casting judgment.”  When we go from being offended (which is not a bad thing on its own) to casting judgment on the offender (which is not our job) we have now placed ourselves on the throne of God, because only he has the right to judge all humanity. 

A few recent events have really spurred me to write this; specifically and most recently the Grammy’s.  As I set there watching the popular award’s show I could not help but get upset, angry, even disgusted at many of the things I saw.  I felt like my personal belief system was being publicly trashed and insulted by people who didn’t even know me.  So, the next thing that happened was I started mentally cutting the people on the T.V. down.  I mentally started judging them, calling them sinners, heathens; the list could go on.  As I set there silently getting more and more angry, and honestly more and more ugly towards them with my thoughts and inner monologue; it occurred to me that I should not be thinking this way.  It occurred to me that it wasn’t my place to cast judgment on these people; partly because I don’t know them and can’t confront them about their actions, but the main reason is because the majority of them do not hold to the same beliefs that I do. 

The Apostle Paul talks in Romans and other places about loving instead of judging; specifically, when those you feel like judging have not chosen to follow Jesus.  The only one who has the right to judge is the one who has been sinned against, namely GOD.  As a follower, I can be offended and I think I have the right to be offended at the actions of the world and those who do not follow my King, BUT I DO NOT have the right to cast judgment on those who don’t claim my King as their own.

Now on the other hand, if I see or hear about a fellow Christian doing things or saying things that are sinful, that are outside the lifestyle of a follower of Jesus, then Biblically it is my duty to confront, rebuke, disciple, and redeem my brother or possibly find someone who can do so more appropriately than I…and do it all “IN LOVE.”  Now even then, even with our brothers and sisters in Christ, I think we should refrain from passing judgment upon them, because we do not hold that power, but confronting and redeeming is commanded of us by Jesus. 

In conclusion I’ll say this: We cannot expect those who do not follow Jesus to act the way we think they should and we cannot hold them accountable to a standard they have not accepted as truth, BUT we can be offended and with love pray for them and try to be Christ to them.  We can seek to be agents of reconciliation as Paul describes in 2 Corinthians 5.  We are ambassadors of Love for the name and glory of Jesus Christ and so we should try to think, speak, and act with love as the driver.   Fellow Christians, do not Judge; rather, let the offense you feel be healed by love through the Holy Spirit. Forgive the offense, because it was your offenses that were forgiven first by Jesus on the Cross.  Then be compelled by that same love to be Christ to the one who offended you.

Old Testament & Law of Moses: Out-dated or Ever-Authoritative

“Be Holy because I, the Lord your God am Holy.”
-Leviticus 19:2b-

This morning I was reading in Leviticus chapters 19-22 (very interesting reading).  As I was reading through one of the lists of Do’s & Don’ts, I was struck with a thought about how this applies to us today, post-crucifixion and post-resurrection. 

One of the arguments that takes place in the church of today is the Old Testament Law doesn’t apply to us so there is no need to really pay much attention to it.  “Oh sure,” some might say, “by all means read it, because there is stuff there that carries a good value for living a Godly life, but we are under the New Covenant of Christ so the Old Covenant doesn't really mean anything to us.”  The problem with that argument is that in Matthew 5:17-20, Jesus speaks specifically about the importance of upholding the Law until the end of time.  That tells me Jesus, knowing that he came to create the “New Covenant”, still felt  the OT Law (the Old Covenant) was just as important now as it was back when it was written. 

I would really like you to indulge me and participate in an experiment: pull out your Bible and read Leviticus 19 (the whole chapter).  By my count, there are 36 laws or decrees that God gives Moses to give to the people to follow.  Now that you’ve read the chapter, go back and count how many of those laws/decrees you think should still be followed today as a post-crucifixion/resurrection Christian who is not bound to the “Law of Moses”……For me there are 7 maybe 8 of those 36 laws that I would say don’t apply or are unnecessary for me to keep today.  I won’t say which ones here, but feel free to ask me next time you see me, that might strike up some interesting conversation.  What’s your number?

Here’s my point with all this; NO, we are not bound to the Old Testament Law, because Jesus’ death and resurrection frees us from that.  HOWEVER, we ARE still bound to the God of the Old Testament and therefore we are still bound to the desires of that God.  The coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 brought with it the actual Spirit of God to dwell with us (how that physically/spiritually works is beyond me, but it works) and the Holy Spirit gives us the knowledge and wisdom to decide what is a law or decree of God that still applies to us today.  It is my belief that we are to continue following and upholding a large portion of the 600 and some-odd laws of the Old Testament because they are good ,moral, ethical, Godly, CHRIST-like laws.  A large number of the 36 laws you just read fit that description.

Simply put, as Christians we must ascribe allegiance to the God of the Old Testament because he is the very same God who is the God of the New Testament; God the Father who sent Jesus to die to saves us from our sins.  Therefore, if we bow to that ONE God, who is the God of the Old and the New, why would we not follow a great many of the laws he instructed the Jews to follow in the Old Testament?  Why would we not strive to follow the laws and decrees that God spoke to Moses and his people?  Since he is the same God, it only makes sense that we would, right? 

Think it over, read Leviticus 19 again; then try to tell God that you will not strive to live out those laws that makes sense for us to follow today and see how the Holy Spirit moves in you.  I’m willing to bet he will bring sense of correction upon you causing you to think twice about that intention. 

Wrestling with God

         In Genesis 32, Jacob is on his way to meet his brother Esau and beg forgiveness for all the tricks that he pulled when they were younger; specifically, stealing the birth-right and the blessing of the first-born.  After sending everything that he had including his family on their way, Jacob stayed back and spent the night by himself.  During the night a “man” comes and wrestles with Jacob till dawn.  This man turns out to be God in flesh…whether this was an angel, God himself, or maybe Jesus (my choice) we can’t really know.  But this passage and story made me think about how I often wonder what God is going to do in my life over the next few years, maybe even 5-10.  I wonder this because I really would like to have an idea of what God plans for me so I can start now getting ready to do whatever it is he has for me in the future; as if I could get myself ready for God’s plans.

          We all are like this…we want to know what’s coming down the road so we can “prepare” and be ready.  Like Jacob, we wrestle with God seeking his blessing, seeking his name, seeking information that he may not want to give to us yet or at all.  This wrestling with God can prove to be painful because sometimes we won’t give in; like Jacob we won’t let go of our wants and sometimes our stubbornness hurts us like Jacob’s dislocated hip that God gave him in order to get him to release.  I constantly have to remind myself that God has me where I am for a reason.  God has me where I am right now for a purpose, for a plan, for a season of joy, for a season of growth, for a season of pain, for a season of learning…whatever this season may be for and however long this season is I must learn to be okay with the NOW; for the will of God has me here. 

          One of my biggest fears is…what if God was trying to tell me something and I missed it?  What if I missed his voice that was speaking to me about some new facet of his will and plan for me?  What if I didn’t hear him when he was trying to show me something?  Maybe I did miss something…in fact I probably have missed many things God has tried to tell me over the course of my life.  And it wasn’t because I wasn’t looking for a sign or word from God, maybe it was because I was holding on too tightly to what I was hoping to hear from him.  Maybe like Jacob I was holding on too tightly…holding on to MY vision of MY future that I wanted God to bless and give ME the “green light”.  Maybe it was my own stubbornness thinking that I knew better than God what was best for me, but how stupid of me to think that way.  How could I ever think that I; a flawed and arrogant (what a ironic combination isn’t it) human being, could ever know better than the God who made me, the God who loves me, and the God who redeemed me.  How could I ever assume such idiocy? 

Because I am broken…because I am just like my 2 year old son who thinks he can do this or that and gets mad at me when I try and help him.  I, Darrell Asche, am but a child who has no idea what is best, yet I constantly tell God to bless what I am doing instead of seeking what he is already blessing and joining in.  This is what we are called to do: “Seek God First!!”  

Seek God first…stop…listen…and his voice will be there whispering in the silence, “Follow me…don’t ask where we are going…just follow…Stay with me step for step…don’t get ahead and don’t lag behind…this isn’t about you…this is about my plans and my ways…Stay with me step for step and I will lead you to where I want you...For, I know the plans I have for you…to teach you…to prosper you…to use you for my glory…my plans are not your plans and my timing is not your timing…Stay with me step for step…I’ll catch you when you fall and love you despite your desire to run ahead of me and get lost…Stay with me…walk with me…talk with me…live with me…

Day 3 - John 3: Water & Spirit

So, after driving the 10 or so hours from Cincinnati back to Elberton yesterday, unloading from the trip and winding down from the drive I was not able to get the December 3rd study on John 3 done yesterday.  SO, today is a double dose.  They will be separate blog posts, but I intend to drop both today.  For those of you that are doing better than I am and did read yesterday and have been waiting patiently, thanks for bearing with me while I was on vacation.  Here we go with John 3
 
Today's Reading is from John 3.  The first section covers verses 1-21: 

    This first section contains in it probably the most famous and most quoted scripture worldwide.  And we'll get to it soon, but I don't want to jump to it first like a kid in a candy store,  I want to work towards it like an art lover in a museum, appreciating all the great art surrounding it and making it what it is.  This section begins with Nicodemus who is a Jewish religious leader; he is a Pharisee; he is someone who knew the Jewish Law backwards and forwards and probably would have had his own followers and disciples like Jesus.  But he comes to Jesus in secret, at night, so he won't be seen by his pharisee buddies belittling himself by going to Jesus the "Rebel Rabbi" for teaching.  
     First, he admits that the pharisees know that Jesus comes by the power of God (this is the first step of salvation by the way, believing Jesus is who he says he is); next Jesus seems to interrupt him and tell him that you have to be "born again" in order to see the Kingdom of God.  Nicodemus is confused because he assumes Jesus is speaking literally, meaning physically being born again.  But Jesus is speaking of a spiritual birth; he says, "no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and Spirit."  Now some people have read this and assumed Jesus is speaking about being baptized then being filled with the Holy Spirit; but Jesus is literally talking about being born of water, (actual child-birth includes a lot of water) that is the first birth.  Then being born of the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, upon acceptance of Jesus as Savior, makes us brand new beings, cleansed of our sins upon faith in Christ.  2 Corinthians 5:17 says we are "new creations" upon our acceptance of Jesus as Savior.  This is what Jesus means by birth of Water & Spirit.  
     Then Jesus goes on to tell us how this new birth is made possible in the most well-known verse in the Bible, John 3:16.  One final thing I want to comment on before moving to the next section is a verse that is often overlooked, but honestly just as powerful and it happens to be John 3:17.  But you need to read both 16 & 17 together to get the full effect (Go ahead and read them now).  
     So often the Church as a whole is misunderstood by the world and seen as a giant finger pointing out the wrongs and the misbehaviors of the world, but verse 17 shows us that the purpose of the church is exactly the same as the purpose of Jesus, "not to condemn the world, but to bring it to salvation" THROUGH CHRIST!!!  And how do we accomplish this...by getting people to a place where they can meet Jesus, namely CHURCH.  Not by forcing it down there throats, rather by loving them, caring for them, having a strong friendship with them.  People don't care about what or how much you know until they know how much you care.  You will never debate or argue someone into a relationship with Jesus, (in the words of Taylor Swift) you will NEVER EVER, EVER, EVER get them and Jesus together by arguing.   It is love that opens the door, and not just love for those who don't know Jesus yet, but also unfailing love for fellow believers, Jesus said in John 13:34-35 in order for the world to know you are my followers you have got to show love to one another.  I think the world has gotten tired of watching the church as a whole fighting in and amongst itself; that one issue alone, and the resulting problems it creates, is probably the biggest reason why so many people want nothing to do with the church once they've experienced the so-called "Love" of church members.  

Okay I need to move on...verses 22-36 is a quick look into an argument that John the Baptist had to be brought in on to settle.  And it was basically over the growing popularity of Jesus and the waning(lessening) popularity of John.  The key thing I want to mention here is what John says about how he views the popularity he once had...in verse 30; he says "He (Jesus) must become greater; I must become less."  This single verse could be and truly should THE life verse for every person who claims to be a Christian, who claims to follow Jesus.  Our entire society is built around making myself greater; really, its about making myself the only priority.  John tells us the opposite should be true.  We must become less; in fact, we need to live as if we have nothing that we need.  Our needs should simply be the needs of Jesus.  When we see with his eyes, think with his mind, and love with his heart then nothing else matters except everyone else and their needs.  That's exactly how Jesus lived his life.  Check out what Jesus says in Matthew 6:19-34 for more on this subject.  Selfless love is what we are called to; "He must become Greater; I must become Less."  This is a verse to live by, give it an honest shot and I guarantee you will never lack for what you really truly need.  

I think that's plenty for now.  But I'll catch you later today in my post on John 4.  So read it and be ready for more of what God has to say to us today!!!

“To WHOM do I Bow my knee?”

Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours.  Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.

-1 Chronicles 29:11 (NIV)

There is a battle that is constantly being fought in my heart over why I do what I do.  This battle is for the glory, for the prominence, for the expansion of my influence beyond my current sphere, to see praise and honor ascribed to my life and work, and to be the one whom people turn to in their hour of need because I have wisdom that no one else can offer.  To WHOM do I bow my knee?

            You probably noticed a recurrence of the word ‘my’ in that description and that is the problem.  I know with every fiber of my being that as the Chronicler stated above “the greatness, the power, the glory, the majesty, and the splendor are the Lord’s.”  Everything is God’s, all I have, all I am, all my gifts, talents, and abilities.  Everything God gave me through inspiration and revelation, as well as everything that I have learned through my life experience is HIS.  Nothing I have comes from my own ability to do anything.  Everything we have comes from or through the hands of God and so we can know that God is in control of all. 

            My struggle is not in the knowledge of this truth.  My struggle comes in the motivation behind doing what I do.  Do I write this article to prove how faithful I am to the will of God, secretly seeking glory for myself through a show of humility?  Do I write this article simply to give honor and glory to God, the giver of all things?  Do I write this article because I am moved by the Holy Spirit to share a struggle of mine so that others can know they are not alone in this battle?  Why do I do what I do?  To WHOM do I bow my knee?

            I am confident in saying that my motivations typically begin with a desire to be transparent, to connect with others, to lift up the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, to carry a word of the Lord that has been revealed to me by the Holy Spirit, and more.  These are generally the initial driving forces behind why I do what I do, but I have to admit that as I am doing what I have been driven to do by God, my selfish motivations come calling and then I care more about how I can benefit from this call of God.  I ask myself, how can I show my wisdom in this?  How can I be made great through this?  How can I extend my influence beyond my borders through this calling of God?  To WHOM do I bow my knee?

            The struggle here is, I am following the call of God, BUT I am making it about ME.  This is a struggle that is always being fought.  The only way I know to keep myself behind the scenes is to continually come back to the initial reason that I do what I do, which is the Call of God.  It is to the one who called me that I must continually come back and bow at HIS feet.  It is he that must receive all the glory, all the majesty, all the splendor; because if I receive these things, then I will FAIL.  When HE receives all the glory, majesty, and splendor then I no longer live but it is Christ who lives in me (Galatians 2.20).  To WHOM do I bow my knee?         

The Kingdom of Heaven

“The Kingdom of Heaven” starring Orlando Bloom, Eva Green, Jeremy Irons, Liam Neeson and a few more that I can’t remember is one of my favorite movies.  As the title implies it is loosely referring to the ancient city of Jerusalem.  The movie is set during the time of the Crusades when there was constant warring over who had control of the Holy City of David.  The sad thing is that all the fighting, battles, blood shed, and lives lost were for control of LAND.  It was the ground, the walls, and the literal location that the city existed upon that was important to the warring parties.  But it was Orlando Bloom’s character, Balian, who was one of the few who understood that it wasn’t the City, the walls, or the dirt that was important; rather it was the lives...the souls...the people that lived within the city that were of most importance.  In the end Balian surrenders Jerusalem to the invading Muslim army with the promise of sparing every single life contained within the city walls.

In the movie, the real “Kingdom of Heaven” was an idea of existence in peace, protecting the lives of those who couldn’t protect themselves.  Loving and caring for all people no matter their race, creed, orientation, social status, or economic status.  And there were but a few who actually understood this passion, one of whom being Balian.  It’s interesting to me how similar this idea sounds to the teachings of one Jesus Christ.  If you notice in the Bible, Jesus’ love showed ZERO preference no matter who he was around.  But, when his actions seemed to show preference, it was usually towards the down and out, the rejected by Jewish society.  Throughout the Bible we see a prominent theme and that is to love those who are unloved, to have compassion on the persecuted, to care for the sick and undeserving, to LOVE ALL especially the least of all.

Jesus’ followers believed that he came to establish a new Kingdom on earth where he would reign as King, “the New David”, and that this kingdom (“The Kingdom of Heaven”) of which Jesus talked about so often would last forever here on earth.  The problem was that Jesus’ followers assumed he was here to establish an earthly Kingdom, but ALL earthly Kingdoms have expiration dates.  Rather, Jesus came to establish an eternal Kingdom one that wasn’t about land, territory, cities, walls, power, or any of the other highly esteemed values of Kings and nobles. Jesus’ Kingdom of Heaven is focused on the people.  Jesus said things like: “the Kingdom of God belongs to [the children]” Mark 10; “the last shall be first” Mark 10; “Love your enemies and pray for them” Matthew 5; “Love your neighbor (meaning ‘all others’) as yourself” Matthew 19; “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends” John 15.  Jesus’ focus was on people; Jesus came for the lives, for the souls, and for the eternity of God’s creation.  On our own, because of our sin, we were the enemies of God, but God sent Jesus to die for the sins of HIS enemies.  That has nothing to do with the pleasures and pursuits of the world and everything to do with LOVE.  The Kingdom of Heaven is about lives, not land; people, not power; eternity, not empires.  And because this is what the King is about, it is what we, his people should be about. 

We were made to Love

The love for equals is a human thing–of friend for friend, brother for brother. It is to love what is loving and lovely. The world smiles. The love for the less fortunate is a beautiful thing–the love for those who suffer, for those who are poor, the sick, the failures, the unlovely. This is compassion, and it touches the heart of the world. The love for the more fortunate is a rare thing–to love those who succeed where we fail, to rejoice without envy with those who rejoice, the love of the poor for the rich, of the black man for the white man. The world is always bewildered by its saints.  And then there is the love for the enemy–love for the one who does not love you but mocks, threatens, and inflicts pain. The tortured’s love for the torturer. This is God’s love. It conquers the world.

From The Magnificent Defeat by Frederick Buechner

God has a specific purpose that he wants all of us to seek and strive for.  In 1 Corinthians 12:4-7 Paul writes:

“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.  There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.  There are different kinds of working, but the Same God works all of them in all men.  Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.”

God has given us all very specific gifts for the purpose of doing what he has called each of us to specifically do for His Kingdom.  That fact has always been present in my life and it has been the number one thing I have always wanted to do and fulfill. 

However, over the last few years if there is anything I have learned: I have learned that I was made for love.  I am much more aware now than ever before that the FIRST & MOST important calling that God has placed upon ALL our lives is to LOVE and love unconditionally.  Jesus tells us in Matthew 22:37-40 that the greatest commandment of all is “Love the Lord with ALL your heart, soul, and mind.  And the second is love your neighbors as much as and more than you love yourself” (my paraphrase).  To love God and love others (meaning ALL people) IS the greatest calling we have as Christians, period.  It’s not about denominations, programming, style of music, traditions, income, hopes, dreams, or anything else that WE think is important.  Life is about loving God and loving all people: rich, poor, fortunate, unfortunate, ally, enemy, etc; it makes no difference.  Love God and Love Others; THAT is why we do what we do, because that is the action that will truly change the world, or as Buechner puts it “conquer the world.”

Keep out of Reach of Children

“Keep out of Reach of Children”… Now that my son, Joshua, is a closing in on 2.5 years old I am noticing the above quoted statement, or rather, this warning everywhere.  And for good reason, he is getting into everything and much of what he is getting into he absolutely shouldn’t have either because it is dangerous or because he doesn’t know how to properly use it.  I am amazed at the things that could be potentially harmful to my son that I never would have thought of as harmful before. 

But there are many things that are absolutely good for my son to be able experience despite his potential ignorance of how to properly use them or understand them.  Love, discipline, mercy, grace, correction, and compassion are just a few of the things that require no previous understanding or experience to have a positive impact on his life. 

This subject reminds me of a time in Jesus’ ministry when little children were being hindered from being front and center to the love and teaching of the Son of God.  In Matthew 19:13-14 we see Jesus’ closest followers rebuking people for bringing their children to see and touch Jesus.  Jesus says to his followers in verse 14, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” 

It is an unfortunate thing, but our society tends to ignore and discount children and their abilities to make an impact in their environments; unfortunately, the American church as a whole has often followed this thinking.  In my opinion, that is one of the reasons why 80-85% of high school graduates walk away from the church of their parents and never return.  I don’t say this to scold the church, but I do say this to remind the church that we must not forget to put our children front and center before the Love of Christ.  The church must continue to love children from K-College in such a way that they can’t help but be overwhelmed by the Love of Christ.  When they feel welcomed, loved, valued, lifted up, inspired, connected, and involved in the church they can’t help but stay plugged in to that kind of environment.  

Also, as parents we absolutely CANNOT simply rely on the church to do the spiritual teaching and training of our children.  WE MUST be the primary vessels of faith transformation for our children.  I know as a parent I struggle with this, just as I struggle with keeping myself in God's word daily.  But we must make it a point of life to teach and train our children in the homes to think, speak, act, and live as Jesus did; this is our #1 role as parents. 

 

“Train a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not turn from it”                                                                                                               Proverbs 22:6

Life Goals vs. Life Purpose

I wrote this article back in April 2009 and recently came back across it and wanted to share...Enjoy!!

A few months ago I finished reading Tony Dungy’s book Quiet Strength.  In case you aren’t sure who he is, Tony Dungy recently retired from being the head Coach of the Indianapolis Colts. He took a team loaded with talent that just couldn’t make it to the Championship game and he led them there and they won the Super Bowl.  There is obviously more to the story and the book tells it all in great detail, but the reason I mention him is because not only was he a great coach, but he is also a strong Christian.  In his book he made a comment that has stuck with me ever since I read it.

I love coaching football, and winning a Super Bowl was a goal I’ve had for a long time.  But it has never been my purpose in life.  My purpose in life is simply to glorify God.  We have to be careful that we don’t let the pursuit of our life’s goals, no matter how important they seem, cause us to lose sight of our purpose.

-Quiet Strength by: Tony Dungy-

It’s very simple our purpose as individuals and as the church of Christ is to glorify GOD.  Our goals can be to reach family and friends, to affect your local schools in very positive ways, to see the your ministry grow and do great things; but if the purpose is to have a big ministry with a lot of programs and events then we are missing the point.  If you’re an athlete, if you excel at playing an instrument, or maybe you have high academic achievements, ask yourself why am I doing this?  What is my purpose?  Is it so I look good and people put me up on a pedestal? 

God has given you your talents or abilities for a reason; that reason is to glorify him through your achievements (and yes even through your failures), whatever they maybe. What’s our purpose as humans, why do we do what we do?  If it is to “glorify God” then we’re on the right track.  When our goals are God honoring and our purpose is for His glory, then I believe He will bless us beyond or hopes and dreams.   

A Sign for YOU...

Today I was reading in Exodus 12 and I was struck by something.  Verse 13 said, "The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live; and when I see the blood I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt."  The thing that struck me was the part that said "the blood shall be a sign FOR YOU."  That part had never really hit me before.  Maybe I'm slow and never picked up on it, but I just always thought that the blood that the Israelite people spread over the frames of their doors was so that God would know the people in those houses were his followers and he shouldn't kill them.  It's amazing house small we make God out to be.  It's amazing how we bring him down to human-sized intelligence and power for no real reason.  I immediately wrote a note down that says this: 

"The blood wasn't used because God needed help knowing who lived in that house.  Rather, it was a measure of obedience, a sign of belief that God was who he said he was and that he would do what he said he would do."

The blood wasn't to HELP GOD, why would the all-knowing God need help?  He knew who was in those houses and whether or not they were his followers.  He didn't need the blood to know whether or not the first-born in that house should die.  The blood was so the people could be reminded that they were making a commitment to God.  They were staking their very livelihood and future on the promises of God.  The blood is a sign FOR YOU.  The people were the ones who needed the blood.  

It's very scary how the Bible in the most odd and obscure occurrences in the history of time tells us what will happen down the road.  The blood painted on the door frames of those slaves homes in Egypt was FOR YOU.  The blood was "A measure of Obedience" for them to state that they believed in God.  Do you know what that passage ultimately reminded me as I have been reminded so many other times in scripture and just brushed it off...The BLOOD WAS FOR ME!!!  


The blood splattered and dripping down the wooden roman cross is FOR ME.  It is a Sign of Obedience, Christ's Obedience to HIS FATHER, that God is who he says he is (MY SAVIOR) and that he will do what he says he will do (LOVE ME).  The Blood is FOR ME and FOR YOU.  

Now, OUR Sign of Obedience is to seek God First.  Everything we think, speak, and do should be...MUST BE about HIM.  Because the Blood of Christ has spared our lives.  Jesus has absorbed the Wrath of God, shielding us from the Father, from the punishment that is due us, from the death that we so deserve.  And now OUR SIGN OF OBEDIENCE requires death to ourselves, death to our selfish ways, death to our self-centered pursuits, death to what we call important.  We must, "by the mercies of God, present our bodies living and holy sacrifices, acceptable to God, this is our spiritual service/act of worship." Romans 12:1.  THIS IS OUR SIGN OF OBEDIENCE: lives fully committed to the will of God which means "LOVE God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself." Luke 10:27 

God Loved us First and that was proven through the blood on the cross, therefore in response to that love; we love him with all that we have and love all people with all that we have, which in itself is another way to Love God.  So, our sign of obedience is to EXIST FULLY IN LOVE.  

A Blip in Time - Psalm 19

        Last month in "God's Masterpiece" I wrote about how Life is Good.  I wrote about how we have been given an enormous gift called life and we are intended to find joy in it.  God wants us to live a life that brings us joy; sometimes life will be hard and painful, but there is still joy to be found in spite of the pain.  Ephesians 2:8-10 tells us how we are God’s masterpiece designed for a life filled with doing the work of God; living a life of service and love.

        With that said I needed to add something that is of the utmost importance.  The entire chapter of Psalm 19 tells us of the Glory of God.  Verse 1 of that chapter says, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of HIS hands.”  Not only does this reiterate what I said last month, but it also pushes me to add this thought. 

        Our lives on this earth are but a “Blip in Time.”  We as humans, in general, live our lives in exaltation of ourselves.  We live for our glory; we spend our time on our pleasures, our wants, our desires, and our purposes.  When Ephesians 2:10 says we were made “to do good works, which God prepared for us in advance to do” it is proclaiming that our lives are simply a blip in the HISTORY OF GOD.  This life, the history of the world, the earth, and the universe are all platforms for the Glory of God to be proclaimed throughout history.  Verse 14 of Psalm 19 finishes the chapter with, “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.” 

        Our lives, the masterpieces of God, are solely and completely intended to do the work God intended for us, all for HIS glory.  Though this earth has been created for enjoyment, its primary purpose is to proclaim the glory of God.  That is the primary and intended purpose of all God’s creation, including human lives.  So, this “blip in time” that is our life as we know it, is intended not to live for ourselves, indulging in every desire of our broken sinful hearts; rather, our lives are created, designed, molded, and intended for the Glory of God.   

In AWE of an eternal GOD...

" 'Your wickedness will punish you; your backsliding will rebuke you. Consider then and realize how evil and bitter it is for you when you forsake the Lord your God and have no awe of me,' declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty."  -Jeremiah 2:19-

Translation: Evil begins when there is no fear of God.

As I have been reading through scripture over the last couple years, one reoccuring theme is the awe that we should have of the Lord.  And this isn't just the "ooooooo, ahhhhhhhh" kind of awe either.  This is the, "God is so mighty and powerful that simply the thought of his unlimited power causes such, fear/respect/reverance/amazement/terror/ in me that I lose control of my bodily functions," kind of awe.  Have you ever been in that kind of awe of God?  Read through the Bible, especially the Old Testament and see the reactions that people had when they were in the presence of God or even His heavenly messenger (which I'm convinced many times was Christ himself).  Often times it was pure terror that overtook people when in God's presence.

Jesus said in Luke 12:4-5: "I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after your body has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell.  Yes, I tell you, fear him."

The beauty of what is happening hear is that Jesus goes on in the following verses to talk about how this same one we should fear (the Lord Almighty) Loves us more than we could ever fathom and cares for us better than we could ever care or provide for ourselves. 

Basically, once we come to a point of truly fearing/being in awe of God, we have nothing else to fear.  Because, "if God is for us who can be against us" (Romans 8:31) and (Romans 8:35-39) "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: 'For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.'   No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Here's what I'm driving at: this world is constantly trying to please us with stuff.  It is constantly coming up with this new thing or that new thing, trying to give us satisfaction.  Trying to fill that "hole" inside of us.  We are seeking that peg to put into the peg-hole.  The problem is that nothing of this earth can ever satisfy us?  Why?  Because we are made in the likeness of God and God is an eternal being!! So, therefore, despite these finite and limited bodies that we are currently living this life in, our souls are made to be eternal, like God.  And so that hole that all humans are seeking to fill, in whatever way they are trying to do so, can only be filled by something or rather someone of eternal value.  We long for something more; something more than this temporal earth can give us.  We are made for eternity with God and only an eternal realtionship with him can fulfill that deep longing inside us.  That is why hell will be so painful and tormenting for anyone who spends eternity there because all those souls were fashioned and designed by God to exist in His presence for eternity, not separated from Him for eternity.  But because they do not fear Him in this life they cannot know Him, cannot have relationship with Him, and cannot spend eternity with Him.

All this is why it is supremely important for us to always be in AWE of God,because once we come to that place of awe, then we can begin to meet with God, know God, have a relationship with him, and know that there is nothing else that is worth our fear.  Fear of God brings us to a place where we are primed and ready for a relationship with Him.  We can then begin to fill that eternal longing that nothing in this world can satisfy.  That eternal longing for an eternal God and Savior. 

Are you in AWE of GOD?